Device for applying high-frequency vibrations to hair for removing same

ABSTRACT

A device for applying vibrations to hair rooted in a body, includes: a pair of tongs having hair-gripping ends capable of being driven into high-frequency vibrations with respect to each other; and a transducer coupled to at least one of the tongs for converting an AC voltage to mechanical vibrations for driving the hair-gripping end into vibrations with respect to generate sufficient heat within the body to facilitate removal of the unwanted hair. The transducer is preferably a piezoelectric element which vibrates the hair at a frequency of 100-500 KHz, preferably 100-350 KHz, and produces a displacement of 5-20 microns.

FIELD AND BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a device for applying high-frequencyvibrations to objects, which device is particularly useful for removinghair.

A hair is composed of a protein named keratin arranged in three layers,termed the outer cuticle, the middle cortex and the central medulla.Hair grows from a follicle, which is a small cup-shaped pit buried underthe skin. The walls of the follicle form the outer root sheath of thehair. The base of the hair follicle called the dermal papilla, is fed bythe bloodstream which carries nourishment (e.g., nutrients and oxygen)to produce new hair and removes waste materials formed in the process(e.g., CO₂). The lower part of the follicle widens out to form a hairbulb containing a germinal matrix, which is the source of hair growth.Hair growth is initiated in the hair bulge, which is a small swell ofthe hair follicle that forms the attachment site of a small smoothmuscle, called the arrector pili muscle. During the anagen phase (thegrowing phase of the hair), the dermal papilla sends signals to the stemcells in the hair bulge to migrate downwards along the follicle.Triggered by the dermal papilla, the stem cells begin to proliferateand, following cell differentiation, a new hair shaft is formed.

Various methods and devices exist for removal of undesired hair. Knowndevices generally pluck hair affixed to a tissue using various types ofgripping, pulling and/or cutting means. The existing techniques can beclassified into two major categories: short-term and long-term hairremoval techniques.

In short-term hair removal techniques, the hair is removed withoutsignificantly damaging the biological regeneration and/or re-growthmechanisms found at the base of each hair. Such technique affects onlythat part of the hair shaft which is located outside the skin, while theliving part of the hair (the hair follicle attached to dermal papilla)continues to grow. The most common short-term hair removals techniquesinclude: shaving, rotary mechanical epilation, waxing and chemicaldepilation.

Long-term hair removal techniques affect the biological re-growthmechanisms of the removed hair, and thus have the potential ofinhibiting re-growth of unwanted hair from the treated organ. The mostcommon long-term hair removal techniques include: electrolysis, laserand intense pulsed (non-laser) light.

A companion application Ser. No. 10/590,477 filed Feb. 20, 2005, andassigned to the same assignee discloses methods and devices for removinghair based on the transmission of acoustic waves through the hair shaftto generate sufficient heat to destroy the hair root. This is done bygripping a segment of the hair and transmitting acoustic waves throughthe hair. That application describes many embodiments which include awave condenser for condensing the acoustic waves before transmittingthem through the hair. Further details of the prior art in this field,as well as the construction of the device described in the above-citedpatent application, are available from the description in that patentapplication, which description is incorporated herein by reference.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides other devices for the efficient couplingof acoustic energy into the hair at a location outside the skin in orderto generate heat in the hair root for removing the hair.

According to a broad aspect of the present invention, there is provideda device for applying vibrations to hair rooted in a body, comprising: apair of tongs having hair-gripping ends biased towards each other, withone tong serving as a hammer being capable of being driven intohigh-frequency vibrations with respect to the other tong; and atransducer coupled only to said one tong for converting an AC voltage tomechanical vibrations for driving the hair-gripping end of said one tonginto vibrations with respect to the other tong; the hair-gripping endsof the pair of tongs including, or being coupled to, gripping surfacesfor gripping the hair between them and for vibrating the hair togenerate sufficient heat within the hair root to facilitate removal ofthe hair.

The invention of the present application is to be distinguished from theprevious application Ser. No. 10/590,477, cited above. Thus, whereas theprevious patent application also removes the hair by acoustical waves,in that case the hair is used as a wave guide for the acoustical energyand is preferably coupled to the acoustical driver by using a wavecondenser for the acoustic waves prior to transmitting them through thehair. FIGS. 4 a and 4 b of that application illustrate an arrangementwhen the hair is gripped by a wave condenser carried at the ends of apair of tongs, each driven by a piezoelectric device.

This is to be distinguished from the invention of the presentapplication, wherein vibrations are applied to the hair by a pair oftongs having hair-gripping ends biased towards each other, wherein onlyone tong, serving as a hammer, is driven into high frequency vibrationswith respect to the other by a transducer, and with the hair-grippingends of the tongs including, or being coupled to, gripping surfaces forgripping the hair between them for inducing vibrations in the hair togenerate sufficient heat within the hair root to facilitate removal ofthe hair.

In the described preferred embodiments, the transducer is apiezoelectric element. In addition at least one of the gripping surfacesincludes a layer of a compliant material, such as a film of an epoxyresin, permitting small displacements of the hair, increasing thecontact surface between the tongs and the hair, and allowing differentdiameter hairs to be gripped and vibrated.

Preferably, the AC voltage is from 100-500 KHz, more preferably 100-350KHz, and the transducer converts the AC voltage to displacements of 5-20microns in the hair gripping surfaces. The hair gripping surfaces maygrip the hair so that the hair is vibrated along any one or combinationof the three orthogonal axes.

In one described preferred embodiment, the piezoelectric element isfixed to the hair-gripping end of one of the tongs and defines agripping surface coupled with the hair-gripping end of the other tongfor gripping the hair between them. The one tong is mounted so that thehair-gripping end is vibrated, and the other tong serves as a relativelystationary anvil. The tips of one or both of the tongs may bedisposable.

A second embodiment is described wherein the piezoelectric element iscoupled to the hair-gripping end of the one tong via one end of a hornto increase the displacement of the hair-gripping end of the one tong.The end of the horn opposite to that coupled to the piezoelectricelement is shaped to define one of the gripping surfaces cooperable withthe hair-gripping end of the other tong to grip the hair between them.In addition, the opposite end of the horn, and the hair-gripping end ofthe other tong, are turned inwardly towards each other to define thegripping surfaces for gripping the hair between them. In this describedpreferred embodiment, the other tong is fixed and serves as a relativelystationary anvil.

A further embodiment is described wherein the device further includes aclamping member for applying a pre-loaded force to the piezoelectricelement to increase the displacement of the piezoelectric element in thedirection of the applied force.

Yet another embodiment is described wherein the at least one tong ismounted such that its hair-gripping end is vibrated, and the other tongis also vibrated.

In this embodiment the piezoelectric element is coupled to thehair-gripping end of the other tong via one end of a second horn tocause the hair-gripping end of the other tong to vibrate synchronouslywith the hair-gripping end of the one tong. The opposite ends of the twotongs are turned inwardly towards each other to define the grippingsurfaces for gripping the hair to be vibrated.

Still another embodiment is described, wherein the piezoelectric elementis coupled to one side of the hair-gripping end of one of the tongs, itsopposite side carrying a horn to increase its displacement. The horn isof conical shape having a large diameter end coupled to thehair-gripping end of the one tong, and a small diameter end defining agripping surface with the hair-gripping end of the other tong forgripping the hair to be vibrated. In addition, the other tong is fixedand serves as a stationary anvil.

Two still further embodiments are described. In one embodiment, the hornis in the shape of a truncated cone wherein the truncated end of thecone is flattened to define one of the hair gripping surfaces. In theother, the horn includes a small-diameter end bent towards the free endof the other tong to define a gripping surface for gripping the hair tobe vibrated. In this embodiment, as well as in the others, at least oneof the gripping surfaces is roughened to securely grip the hair.

The device may include a plurality of pairs of such tongs to grip andvibrate a plurality of hairs at one time.

As will be described more particularly below, such devices areparticularly useful for applying vibrations to hair in order to weakenor destroy their roots by heat and to facilitate the removal of suchhair such as by plucking.

Further features and advantages of the invention will be apparent fromthe description below.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention is herein described, by way of example only, withreference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIGS. 1-7 schematically illustrate several embodiments of the inventionfor purposes of example;

FIG. 8 illustrates the invention embodied in a line of pairs of tongsfor gripping and vibrating a plurality of hair at one time, one tong ofeach pair being a vibrating hammer and the other tong of each pair beinga stationary anvil;

FIG. 9 is a side view illustrating the line of vibrating hammers in thedevice of FIG. 8, without their respective stationary anvils;

FIG. 10 illustrates a rectangular matrix of a plurality of vibratinghammers, arranged in a plurality of horizontal lines and verticalcolumns, according to FIG. 9, but without the stationary anvils betweeneach vertical line of vibrating hammers;

and FIG. 11 diagrammatically illustrates a device including a pluralityof pairs of vibrating hammers arrayed in a staggered relationship, butwithout the stationary anvils cooperable with each vibrating hammer.

It is to be understood that the foregoing drawings, and the descriptionbelow, are provided primarily for purposes of facilitating understandingthe conceptual aspects of the invention and possible embodimentsthereof, including what is presently considered to be a preferredembodiment. In the interest of clarity and brevity, no attempt is madeto provide more details than necessary to enable one skilled in the art,using routine skill and design, to understand and practice the describedinvention. It is to be further understood that the embodiments describedare for purposes of example only, and that the invention is capable ofbeing embodied in other forms and applications than described herein.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

FIGS. 1-7, as to be more particularly described below, relate to severalpreferred embodiments of devices constructed in accordance with thepresent invention for applying vibrations to unwanted hair rooted in abody, in order to destroy their roots and remove the hair. Generallyspeaking, the device grips the hair between a pair of tongs with apredetermined contact force. At the point of contact between the hairand the respective tongs, the hair is subject to mechanicaldisplacements, preferably at a frequency of 100-500 KHz, more preferably100-350 KHz, and an amplitude of 5-20 microns. The vibrations may be ina direction along the hair shaft, perpendicular to the hair shaft, or acombination of both.

In cases where only one of the tongs is vibrated, the vibrating tong isreferred to as a hammer, and the stationary tong is referred to as ananvil. One part of the hammer is a transducer, e.g., a piezoelectricelement, for converting a high-frequency AC voltage to mechanicalvibrations for driving the hair-gripping end of at least one tong intovibrations with respect to the hair-gripping end of the other tong. Thepiezoelectric element can vibrate freely, or may be pre-loaded by aclamping device. A horn or other mechanical amplification mechanism canbe used to amplify the displacements of the hair during its vibrationsby the piezoelectric element. The free ends of the pair of tongsinclude, or are coupled to, gripping surfaces for gripping the hairbetween them and for inducing vibrations in the gripped hair to generatesufficient heat within the root of the hair to damage or destroy theroot and thereby to facilitate removal of the hair.

Following is a more complete description of the various devicesillustrated in the drawings.

The device illustrated in FIG. 1 is generally designated 10. It includesa pair of tongs 11, 12 having hair-gripping ends 11 a, 12 a inturned toface each other, and a transducer, in the form of a piezoelectricelement 13 interposed between the two inturned ends of the pair oftongs. The upper surface of hair-gripping end 11 a is preferably roundedto engage the lower surface of piezoelectric element 13 along a lineextending transversely of tong 11. Preferably, the lower surface of tongend 12 a is flattened.

The upper surface of hair-gripping end 11 a is covered by a film 11 b ofa compliant or yielding plastic material, such as epoxy resin, to permitdisplacements of the gripped hair, and to accommodate hairs of differentdiameters. One or both gripping surfaces can also be roughened to firmlygrip the hair.

The hair-gripping ends 11 a, 12 a of the two tongs are urged towardseach other by a force, as shown by arrow F, so that a hair H to beremoved from the person's body, is gripped along a line contact surfacebetween the upper surface of end 11 a of tong 11, and the lower surfaceof piezoelectric element 13.

Piezoelectric element 13 may be constructed to as to apply vibratoryforces to the gripped hair H along any one, or any combination of, thethree orthogonal axes. Thus, by applying the electrodes to the opposedsurfaces of piezoelectric element 13, the gripped hair will be subjectedto vibratory displacements in the longitudinal direction (x-axis) of thehair, as shown by arrow 14 a, or in both directions. On the other hand,by applying the electrodes to surface 13 b and its opposed surface onthe opposite side of the piezoelectric element, the gripped hair will besubjected to vibratory displacements in the transverse direction(y-axis), as shown by arrow 14 b. In any case, the vibrations areapplied to the hairs sufficiently to weaken or destroy their roots byheat generated within the roots to facilitate removal of the hair byplucking.

In the device illustrated in FIG. 1, the lower tong 11 is fixed, andtherefore may be referred to as an anvil, whereas the upper tong 12 ismounted in a cantilever fashion so as to be vibrated, and therefore maybe referred to as a hammer.

The device of FIG. 2, generally designated 20, also includes a pair oftongs 21, 22 having inturned hair-gripping ends 21 a, 22 a. Also here,the lower tong 21 is stationary, to serve as an anvil, whereas the uppertong 22 is mounted in a cantilever fashion, so as to serve as a hammer.In addition, the upper surface of tong end 21 a is provided with a film21 b of a compliant or resilient plastic material, permitting smalldisplacements of the gripped hair and also accommodating hairs ofdifferent diameters. The two tongs 21, 22 are loaded by a force, shownby arrow F, biasing the two inturned ends of the tongs towards eachother to grip the hair between them.

In this case, however, the piezoelectric element 23 engages the end ofthe upper tong 22 opposite to its inturned end 22 a so as to apply itsvibrations to that end. In addition, the upper tong 22 includes, or isconfigured to serve as, a horn for multiplying the amplitude of thevibrations produced by the piezoelectric element 23.

As in the FIG. 1 embodiment, piezoelectric element 23 may be constructedso as to induce vibratory displacements along any one, or anycombination of, the three orthogonal axes in FIG. 1; that is thevibratory displacements may be along the longitudinal axis (x-axis) ofthe hair, as shown by arrow 24 a, perpendicularly to the hair, as shownby arrow 24 b, or both. In this case, the perpendicular displacement isup and down (z-axis), rather than transversely of the hair (y-axis).

In all other respects, the device illustrated in FIG. 2 can beconstructed and used as described above to include the compliant film 21b and/or a roughened surface.

FIG. 3 illustrates a device, generally designated 30, similar to device20 of FIG. 2 except that device 30 of FIG. 3 further includes a clampingmember, generally designated 35, for applying a pre-load force to thepiezoelectric element 33 to increase the displacement of thepiezoelectric element in the direction of the applied force 34 a or 34b. The construction of device 30 illustrated in FIG. 3 is otherwise thesame as described above with respect to FIG. 2, including a relativelystationary tong 31, and a vibratory tong 32 each having inturned ends 31a, 32 a facing each other to serve as contact surfaces for gripping thehair between them. Surface 31 a may include the complaint film 31 band/or a roughened surface, as in FIGS. 1 and 2.

FIG. 4 illustrates a device, generally designated 40, of similarconstruction as FIG. 3, including two tongs 41, 42 having inturned ends41 a, 42 a, respectively, to grip the hair between them, with apiezoelectric device 43 located at the opposite end of the upper tong42. In this case, however, both tongs are mounted in a cantileverfashion, and piezoelectric element 43 is interposed between end 42 b ofthe upper tong 42 and an inturned end 41 c of the lower tong 41, so asto vibrate both tongs synchronously.

As in the previously describe embodiments, the piezoelectric element 43may be designed so as to produce a vibratory force along the axis of thehair, as shown by arrow 44 a, or perpendicularly to the axis of thehair, as shown by arrow 44 b. In addition, the two tongs are urgedtowards each other by a force shown by arrow F to grip the hair betweentheir inturned ends 41 a, 42 a. In this case, the upper tong 42 isvibrated in both directions, as shown by arrows 44 a and 44 b. One (orboth) inturned ends 41 a, 41 b may include the compliant film (41 b)and/or roughened surface.

The device illustrated in FIG. 5, and therein generally designated 50,illustrates a further construction in accordance with the presentinvention, also including a pair of tongs 51, 52. In this case, thelower tong 51 is stationary, to serve as an anvil, and the upper tong 52is vibrated to serve as a hammer. The lower tong 51 has an inturned end51 a facing the hair-gripping end 52 a of the upper tong 52, and mayalso include the compliant film 51 b and/or a roughened surface.However, end 52 a of tong 52 is not inturned as before, but rather is ofan enlarged surface for mounting the piezoelectric element 53 which,preferably, is of a circular configuration so as to produce a vibratoryforce towards and away the inturned end 51 a of the lower tong 51, asshown by arrow 54.

The under surface of the enlarged end 52 a of tong 52, facing theinturned end 51 a of tong 51, carries a horn 55 of conical shape havinga large diameter facing end 52 a of tong 52, and an apex of smalldiameter facing the inturned end 51 a of the lower tong 51. Preferably,the apex of horn 55 is blunted, flattened, or roughened, so as to definea firm contact with the hair gripped between the two tongs.

As in the previously described embodiments, the two tongs 51, 52 arenormally urged towards each other by a force, shown by arrow F, so as togrip the hair between the apex of horn 55 and the upper surface ofinturned end 51 a of lower tong 51 before the piezoelectric element 53is energized to impart vibrations to the gripped hair.

FIG. 6 illustrates a further device, generally designated 60, alsoincluding a lower tong 61 and an upper tong 62 having hair-gripping ends61 a, 62 a, serving as contact surfaces for gripping the hair to besubjected to vibrations by the piezoelectric element 63. As in FIGS.1-5, the upper surface of inturned end 61 a may include a film 61 b of aplastic resin and/or may be roughened to accommodate and hold hairs ofdifferent diameters and to permit small displacements of the grippedhair. In this case, however, the piezoelectric element 63 is mounted toend 62 b opposite end 62 a of tong 62, such that the vibratorydisplacements of the hair by energization of the piezoelectric element63 produce displacements along the axis of the gripped hair, as shown byarrow 64.

Also in this case, the upper tong 62 includes, or is shaped as, a conichorn for multiplying the amplitude of the vibrations produced bypiezoelectric element 63. As in the previously described embodiments,the upper surface of the inturned end 61 a of the lower tong 61 may berounded, whereas the lower surfaces of end 62 a of the upper tong 62 maybe flattened, or vice versa (as shown) so as to define adequate contactsurfaces for gripping the hair to be subjected to the vibrations by theenergization of the piezoelectric element 63.

As in the previously described devices, the two tongs 61, 62 are urgedtowards each other by a force, represented by arrow F, in order to gripthe hair before it is subjected to vibrations by the energization of thepiezoelectric element 63.

The device of FIG. 7 is similar to that of FIG. 6, except that the conichorn of the upper tong is not truncated, but rather is bent at its apex,or small-diameter end, towards the inwardly-extending end of the lowertong.

Thus, the device illustrated in FIG. 7, and therein generally designated70, includes a lower tong 71 having an inwardly-bent end 71 a, and anupper tong 72 in the form of, or including, a conical hornconfiguration. The piezoelectric element 73 is fixed to thelarge-diameter end of the upper tong 72, whereas the small-diameter end72 a of tong 72 is bent inwardly towards the inwardly-extending end 71 aof the lower tong 71 for gripping the hair between the contactingsurfaces of the two tongs. As described earlier, the upper tong 72 isurged towards the lower tong 71, by a force indicated by arrow F, suchthat the hair to be gripped and removed is firmly held between the twocontacting surfaces of ends 71 a and 72 a of the two tongs. Surface 71 amay include a compliant film 71 b of plastic resin, and/or may beroughened to securely grip hairs of different diameters.

It will be appreciated that, in the construction of FIG. 7, thevibrations or displacements of the gripped hair by the piezoelectricelement 73 will be along the axis of the hair, as shown by arrow 74.

In all other respects, the device illustrated in FIG. 7 is constructedand operates as described above particularly with respect to FIG. 6.

FIGS. 8 and 9 illustrate a construction including a plurality of pairsof tongs coupled to the transducer to enable a plurality of hairs to begripped and vibrated at one time.

Thus, as shown in FIG. 8, the device includes a plurality of vibratingtongs, serving as hammers, arranged in a line, as shown by the first twohammers indicated at 81 a and 81 b. Each hammer 81 a, 81 b, cooperateswith a fixed tong, serving as an anvil, 82 a, 82 b, arrayed in a line onone side of the hammers 81 a, 81 b, and a second group of fixed tongs oranvils 82 c, 82 d, arrayed in a line on the opposite side of the hammers81 a, 81 b. The line of hammers 81 a, 81 b are coupled to a commonpiezoelectric element 83, via a common base 84, so that activating thepiezoelectric device 83 will cause all the hammers 81 a, 81 b to vibratetogether. On the other hand, each line of anvils 82 a-82 d is mounted ona fixed base 85 a, 85 b.

It will thus be seen that in the construction illustrated in FIG. 8, theline of hammers 81 a, 81 b is able to grip and vibrate one line of hairsbetween one set of the anvils 82 a, 82 b, and another line of hairsbetween the other set of anvils 82 c, 82 d, so as to remove a pluralityof hairs at one time.

FIG. 9 more particularly illustrates the line of hammers, generallydesignated 81, the common piezoelectric device 83 for vibrating thehammers, and the common base 84 for coupling the hammers to thepiezoelectric device 83. For the sake of clarity, the anvils 82 a-82 d,and their mounting bases 85 a, 85 b, are not shown in FIG. 9.

FIG. 10 illustrates a construction similar to that of FIGS. 8 and 9,except that the plurality of pairs of tongs are arranged according to arectangular matrix, generally designated 101, including a plurality ofhorizontal lines and vertical columns, so as to enable a much largernumber of hairs to be gripped and vibrated at one time, by theactivation of the common piezoelectric device, generally designated 103.For the sake of clarity, the anvils are not shown in FIG. 10.

FIG. 11 illustrates another variation, including a plurality ofhorizontal lines and vertical columns of pairs of tongs, but in thiscase the lines are staggered with respect to each other. Thus, as seenin FIG. 11, one line of vibrating tongs or hammers 111 a is in astaggered relationship with respect to the next adjacent line 111 b ofvibrating tongs or hammers. As shown, all the hammers are activatedsimultaneously by a common piezoelectric device 113. Again, for the sakeof clarity, the fixed tongs or anvils on each of the opposite sides ofeach of the vibrating hammers are not shown.

While the invention has been described with respect to several preferredembodiments, it will be appreciated that these are set forth merely forpurposes of example, and that many other variations may be made. Forexample, transducer devices other than piezoelectric elements, such asmagnetostrictive elements, could be used for producing the vibrations.In addition, the vibratory displacements of the hair to be removed couldbe not only along any one orthogonal axis of the hair, but also alongany combination of such axes. Also, instead of mounting the “hammertong” (e.g. 12, FIG. 1) in cantilever fashion, it could also bepivotally mounted and include a counter-force (e.g., a spring) on theopposite side of the pivot. Further, the stationary tong (e.g., 11,FIG. 1) is “relatively” stationary with respect to the “hammer tong”since it may also involve some movement. Still further, the contactingsurfaces of both tongs could be coated with a compliant or yielding filmand/or be roughened to more firmly grip hairs of different diameters.Also, other mechanical amplification mechanisms, such as known in theart, could be used in place of a horn as described above.

Many other variations, modifications and applications of the inventionwill be apparent to those skilled in the art.

1. A device for applying vibrations to a hair rooted in a body,comprising: a pair of tongs having hair-gripping ends biased towardseach other, with one tong, serving as a hammer, being capable of beingdriven into high-frequency mechanical vibrations with respect to theother tong; and a transducer coupled only to said one tong forconverting an AC voltage to mechanical vibrations for driving thehair-gripping end of said one tong into mechanical vibrations withrespect to the other tong; said hair-gripping ends of the pair of tongsincluding, or being coupled to, gripping surfaces for gripping the hairbetween them and for mechanically vibrating the hair to generatesufficient heat within the hair root to facilitate removal of the hair.2. The device according to claim 1, wherein at least one of saidgripping surfaces include a layer of compliant or yielding materialpermitting small displacements of the hair, increasing the contactsurface between the tongs and the hair, and allowing differing diameterhairs to be gripped and vibrated.
 3. The device according to claim 1,wherein said AC voltage is from 100-500 KHz.
 4. The device according toclaim 1, wherein said transducer converts the AC voltage todisplacements of 5-20 microns in said gripping surfaces.
 5. The deviceaccording to claim 1, wherein said gripping surfaces grip the hair to beremoved such that the hair is vibrated along one or more of the threeorthogonal axes.
 6. The device according to claim 1, wherein saidtransducer is fixed to the hair-gripping end of said one tong anddefines a gripping surface cooperable with the hair-gripping end of theother tong for gripping the hair between them.
 7. The device accordingto claim 4, wherein said at least one tong is mounted such that itshair-gripping end is vibrated, and said other tong serves as arelatively stationary anvil.
 8. The device according to claim 1, whereinsaid transducer is coupled to the hair-gripping end of said one tong viaone end of a horn to increase the displacement of said hair-gripping endof said one tong.
 9. The device according to claim 8, wherein the end ofsaid horn opposite to that coupled to the transducer is shaped to defineone of said gripping surfaces cooperable with the hair-gripping end ofthe other tong to grip the hair between them.
 10. The device accordingto claim 9, wherein said opposite end of the horn, and saidhair-gripping end of the other tong, are turned inwardly towards eachother to define said gripping surfaces for gripping the hair betweenthem.
 11. The device according to claim 8, wherein the device furtherincludes a clamping member for applying a pre-stress force to thetransducer to increase the displacement of the transducer in thedirection of the applied force.
 12. The device according to claim 8,wherein the opposite end of said other tong is also mounted to cause itshair-gripping end also to vibrate synchronously, by and with, saidhair-gripping end of the one tong.
 13. The device according to claim 12,wherein the opposite ends of the two tongs are turned inwardly towardseach other to define said gripping surfaces for gripping the hair to bevibrated.
 14. The device according to claim 4, wherein said transduceris coupled to one side of the hair-gripping end of one of said tongs,the opposite side of the hair-gripping end of said one tong carrying ahorn to increase the displacement of said hair-gripping end of said onetong.
 15. The device according to claim 14, wherein said horn is ofconical shape having a large diameter end coupled to said hair-grippingend of said one tong, and a small diameter end defining a grippingsurface with the free of the other tong for gripping the hair to bevibrated.
 16. The device according to claim 14, wherein said horn is inthe shape of a truncated cone in which the truncated end of the conedefines one of said hair gripping surfaces.
 17. The device according toclaim 14, wherein said horn includes a small-diameter end bent towardsthe hair-gripping end of said other tong to define a gripping surfacetherewith for gripping the hair to be vibrated.
 18. The device accordingto claim 1, wherein there is a plurality of said pairs of tongs coupledto said transducer to enable a plurality of hairs to be gripped andvibrated at one time.
 19. The device according to claim 18, wherein onetong in each of said plurality of pairs is vibrated by said transducerto serve as a hammer, and the other tong in each of said plurality ofpairs is relatively stationary to save as an anvil.
 20. The deviceaccording to claim 18, wherein said plurality of said pairs of tongs arearrayed in one or more lines.